Rebellion of the Heart
by LoremasterEolas
Summary: What If tree diagram was never destroyed by Index? And an accident occurs while Mikoto takes action by attempting to manipulate the information regarding the sister's project? These chain of events would take a disastrous turn as unstoppable forces clash in a battle of ideology for the future of Academy City. (Alternative Universe)
1. Into the Rabbit Hole we shall Go

**July 28th**

"Warning: Chapter 3, Verse 2. All barriers for Index Librorum Prohibitorum's collar from first to third have been breached. Preparing to regenerate... failed. The collar cannot self-regenerate. Switching priorities to the elimination of the intruder to protect the 103,000 achieved grimoires."

Kamijou Touma looked at what laid before him.

Index slowly stood up in such an awkward manner that she seemed like she never had any bones or joints in her entire body.

Which was made even more creepy by the blood coloured magical circles in her eyes which seemed to stare straight through Touma. Seeing those eyes, it was abundantly clear to him, that this was no longer the Index he'd gotten to know over the last few days.

Those eyes with no sense of human warmth were seen by Kamijou back when Index had her back sliced open by Kanzaki, and she was left dying in front of his apartment. Back then her eyes had the same inhuman expression, which somehow helped him to remember what Index once told him.

 _"I have no magic power, so I can't use it"_

"There is something I thought didn't quite fit when all of this first started. You not an esper like the students in this city, but you told me you weren't able to use magic. " Touma stated which caused the possessed Index to stare intently at the boy in response, then suddenly her eyes widened as her magical power intensified to the point of blinding him. The boy's luck would only get worse as the moment he managed to see clearly again, two magic circles in Index's eyes grew simultaneously. They were now two meters across and were positioned in front of Index's face. With each one being fixed in place with its centre over one of her eyes and the magic circles would move through the air whenever she slightly moved her head.

Index then sang something beyond normal human comprehension, and for an instant, the two magic circles exploded with power. Unleashing what seemed like an outburst of high voltage electricity between the two circles and unlike Misaka's lightning which was bluish-white, this lightning was pitch black. It then soared down the middle of the room towards the boy who desperately threw his right hand forward to intercept it. And like a thunderous clash, it came to an erupt stand still against the power of Imagine Breaker in the boy's right hand.

His body trembled from the shock and struggled to remain standing as he held back the possessed Index's attack. "God dammit."

Stiyl watched with a stunned expression as the cigarette in his mouth fell to the ground. "That's impossible.."

"She told you the truth as she can't use magic." Kanzaki responded trying to defend what Index had previously told Touma. The boy looked back as far as he could while standing his ground under this relentless assault. "Don't you see what's happening? The church has been lying to you this entire time about index having no magical ability. Do you get it now and that thing about her dying if you don't erase her memory every year is just another lie. The only thing which is killing her right now is whatever the church had planted in her from the beginning. If we can find a way to stop it, then there wouldn't be any need to erase her memory. See it this way; these are the same people who made a little girl read some dangerous books, so you know they don't honestly care about Index's happiness at all. That's the kind of people you work for and do you honestly think they will share their place with a pair of low lever enforcers? Not convinced? Then why don't you just ask Index right now?" Touma shouts and it only be a moment of silence for the possessed Index makes a further move.

"St. George's Sanctuary is showing no effect against the intruder. Switching to another spell and continuing elimination of the intruder in order to protect the collar."

The attack was being stopped by Touma's right hand suddenly turned darker and more intense as lightning scattered in ever direction. "Ahhhhh!" Touma yelped in pain as his slightly cracked in response to the new intensity of the spell. The two magicians realised then this was not the Index they knew, but an Index the church had never shared with them.

"..."

For just a moment, Stiyl gritted his teeth so hard it seemed that they would crack.

"...Fortis931."

Thousands of cards flew from within his pitch black clothes. Cards that were carved with flame runes spiraled around like a tornado and in no time at all they had covered the walls, ceiling, and the floor without a single gap. He wasn't going to intervene in order to save Kamijou. It was an action taken to save the girl named Index, which made Stiyl pressed his hand against Kamijou's back.

"I don't have any interest in hearing your unproven theories. What we know for certain is that if we do this we can save her for the time being. I will do whatever it takes to make sure that happens, even if I have to kill you. That is what I have decided, many years ago. So give up..." Stiyl said his piece to Touma, who looked away in annoyance to the magician's words. "For the time being? That's not much of a promise since I'm talking about saving her for good. There is only one question you need to ask yourself." Touma said who breathed deeply before continuing. "Do you want to save Index or not?!"

Both Stiyl and Kanzaki was speechless after hearing those words.

"You guys have been waiting for a long time and you want a happy end for all this don't you? One in which you no longer have to be Index's enemy. You want to be her friends in truth and not the people who snatch away her memories from her every year." Touma said as the attack was started to crack at his right hand even further with each passing second. But despite the pain, he felt the boy continued. "You never gave up hope altogether. You never stopped trying. Because you made a promise to yourself, not to abandoned Index. Knowing what you have to do you've done it your personal mission to save this girl, who's been your friend and companion... You wanted to be the heroes of this story, so why content yourself to supporting roles now? You told me earlier you swore to protect her with your very lives. No matter who or what got in the way! If so your part is far from over, and it's barely even begun. Are you going to give up because the first act turned out to be little on the long side? If you help me and instead of fighting me. Then maybe you will get your happy ending, so now let us do this!" Touma shouted as his hand was finally knocked a good way backwards, leaving Kamijou defenceless as the pillar of light rushed at him with dreadful speed.

"... Salvare000!"

The moment before the destructive light struck the boy's face, Kanzaki yelled her magician's name. Followed by her large Japanese sword which sliced through the air. Her Nanasen attack utilising seven wires flew towards index at a speed that seemed to slice through sound itself.

But, she didn't aim for Index.

The wires tore through the fragile tatami mat at Index's feet. Causing her to lose her footing and stumbling backwards. The magic circles linked to her eyes moved, and the pillar of light that supposed to be aimed at Kamijou missed its target completely. And like a giant sword, the light sliced through the wall and ceiling of the apartment. It even sliced through the pitch black clouds floating in the night sky. In fact, it soared even through towards the upper atmosphere and close to one of the three satellites hovering over Academy City.

Had it only been a few seconds sooner, than maybe the satellite would have also been torn through by the pillar of light. However, by only just a breath had it escaped from being shot down.

The satellite which had survived that moment was known as Orhime 1, which housed the Tree Diagram.

 **Chapter 1** \- Into the Rabbit Hole.

 **August 21st**

"Thank you for riding the Academy City Tour Bus." The bus attendant announces over the speaker as Mikoto sat with a depressed look while seeing the Tree Diagram command slowly appear in the distance.

"This Vehicle's destination is the space development area in the 23rd Academy district. As its name implies this district houses many facilities specialising in the space industry including Academy City space centre, which boasts a cutting edge launch site. Also included is the information exchange centre, which links up the world's most powerful supercomputer: Tree Diagram. " The bus attendant continues over the speaker, but soon after mentioning Tree diagram, she only seems more depressed.

It is the world's leading supercomputer built into the artificial satellite Orhime 1. This supercomputer which was originally launched into space initially to analyse the climate. So once every month it predicts the movement of every atmospheric particle on the planet and calculates the entire month's weather. But on the other days, it's used to calculate predictions for the many research projects in Academy City. This includes the level six shift project which is undertaken by Accelerator.

To kill twenty thousand clones of the Railgun, it was predicted by Tree Diagram that Accelerator would then achieve level six.

So to put it more accurately, Tree Diagram had ordered the creation and slaughter of twenty thousand clones. And the higher ups of this city was leaving their decisions up to a damned machine. It made her sick, and she had no intention of allowing Tree diagram to ruin even more lives. Even if the creation of the sisters was ordered by it in the first place.

That is what she'd thought as she gotten off the bus at the super computer's command facility. She watched briefly as the bus she was on started to leave and for a good reason.

So nobody would see what she intended to do next.

"Well Now!" An old voice of a man said which disappointed Mikoto to hear that somebody was still around. "Odd for a student to visit at this hour." He said altering his cap to see if it was true and without wasting anymore time Mikoto turned around with a fake smile. "Yes sir! I have a summer vacation report to do. I was hoping to finish up some research today." She said with the most believable excuse that came to her mind.

"What a good student. Atta girl. But the sun's starting to set, so don't wander too close to the fenced-in area, yeah? There's no entry- The area's classified." The old man said pointing to the area of which was a fenced off. "And you don't wanna get caught by the security robots." The man continued and with a small nod started to leave. "Right. I'll be careful." Mikoto said in response with that same wry smile and when the old man left the area.

Mikoto leapt into action and without any trouble as she took control of the security robots guarding the fenced off area. She then easily scaled the fence thanks to her electromagnetic powers and continued to use it to run across the wall inside the fenced area.

"The Tree Diagram information exchange. The time it swaps data with tree diagram is my one and only window. I can hack into it from here and force it to spit out a face prediction. 'A fatal error has been observed in the level 6 shift project. It is the result of a confrontation between The Railgun and Accelerator. The damage to the project caused by the confrontation is irreparable; therefore, Accelerator's ability to shift to level 6 has been eliminated.' The message will freak out the researchers who let Tree Diagram run their lives. They'll beg for a reassessment of the project. That's why I'll also program tree diagram to release another fake prediction that has nothing to do with the sisters." Mikoto thought to herself as she came to a sudden stop on the wall and leapt off towards the motion sensors on the ground. "I know they'll figure out my trick with a day." she continued as she passed the motion sensors which became instantly under her control the moment she touched the ground. She looked up instantly to her target which was only a few minutes away. "But that's all the time I need to run this project into the ground," She said with a tired, but with a rather sinister expression as she charges off to her goal.

It would take her another twenty minutes to get into the facility and pass a few security barriers like more drones, security cameras and even one or two patrolling guards. She also had noticed a scientist or two leaving the facility, but she was surprised that she didn't sense anymore here. Many of the halls she went down were rather empty, and it's not like she was complaining since it made the job of sneaking it much easier.

However, it gave her an uneasy feeling which only grew the closer she got to the heart of the facility, and with one step round the corner, the door to it was there. She didn't waste time getting there, and just as she was about to open the door, she hesitated for a moment. "This place can exchange info with the brains of Academy City. It's supposed to be important. But I guess they only protect the outside mostly, so I'm safe once I'm in?" She thought as with a quick spark of her power she opened the door and headed inside towards the stairs leading to her goal. "Or Is that just because they think it can't be hacked?" She had thought while stepping into the heart of the facility.

What she saw was many televisions which plastered the walls, with large amount of consoles below and chairs. "And the heart of their communications room is currently empty? At least there are signs people have been here..." She'd thought seeing one cup of coffee which was still hot on the side. It looks like however was here had just gone to the toilets or something. "Thankfully they left the machinery running at full function. ... Wait... did they leave because they saw me coming? Is this a trap? Something does feel wrong. They'd never let me just waltz in here without reason." Mikoto thought and couldn't exactly shake off that bad feeling, but glancing through the many screens which were all currently on. She could see the status of Tree diagram right now, that it was online and was almost time to swap data with it.

"I'm here now, so I should make a move before the person who was just here comes back." Mikoto continued as she places her right hand on what seemed to be the central console. She would usually use her PDA but, that wasn't needed since the machines were currently running and currently processing data to go to the supercomputer right now even.

Her power sparkled as the computer screens started to suddenly rush through much of the data records, aiming for documents regarding the sister project. With a brief look over she quickly went over towards actually making a direct hack into tree diagram. This would be the first time she would hack a supercomputer, which probably was on a different level than anything she had hacked before and the length of time it seemed to take was proving just that fact. Her powers even sparkled more on the console as she mentally inputs command through her ability.

Just a little longer, that is all she needed before her fake prediction would become reality.

"That's right... just a little long- Huh..." Mikoto thought who was caught by surprise as suddenly the door from down below was smashed open. In no time at all, as she continued to have her right hand on the console, she turned her attention right around towards the way she came from to hear a group of people rushing in. And suddenly a long black haired girl in strange tight clothing leapt into the air from the staircase.

This girl had given an extraordinarily dangerous aura, and she would be proven right as the visitor suddenly unleashed a powerful green light from the palm of her left hand. "That's... The Meltdowner!" Mikoto shouted as from instinct she generated a tremendous amount of electrical power through her body and tried to focus it on her left hand. With great reaction time, she was able to intercept the attack with her left hand, with her electrical powers also giving her the ability to block the Meltdowner which would usually go through somebody's body like a knife to butter.

But this attack wasn't any imitation, which Mikoto had thought at first since it wasn't the 4th ranked level five which used it. This attack which clashed with her left hand put tremendous pressure on her body, she gritted her teeth as she tried to overpower the attack, but it just didn't seem to budge. Out of frustration, she generated more power throughout her entire body and even through her right hand she then threw it forward to intercept the long haired girl's attack.

With a sound which replicated that of actual thunder, Mikoto smashed the Meltdowner blast to the side in a show of force. She wouldn't have any sense of making the next move as she realised the horrible fact of what she had done. She was trembling as her eyes slowly passed the group of black op agents who entered the room and the black long haired girl as she looked back at the main console for Tree Diagram.

Bluish-white sparks were seen coming from the console and everything else. The information on the screen seemed like somebody had opened many command prompts. While also inserting too much information at the same time.

"System break, Error 303... Warning...Malfunction had occurred. " An automatic voice came from over the speakers in the room. The many screens were now flashing red, and it sounded like something was going to explode. The mistake Mikoto had done was generating too much electricity while still in contact to the actual console. She couldn't have helped it, since being attacked so suddenly caused her to react in response.

She should have listened to her bad feeling and left, but she honestly had no choice. This was her last chance to save her sisters, and this had just gone up in smoke in a matter of seconds.

"Signal lost... Contact with Tree Diagram has been lost..." The same automatic voice expressed over the speaker in the room, and the horrible fact of what that meant came clear. Just like in the same manner which Mikoto was able to destroy labs through hacking, she had accidentally done the same thing with Tree Diagram.

Which had exploded in the upper atmosphere and despite there no being any physical sound from the event. All across Academy city and especially as the day was growing dimming, you could see the explosion if you only looked up. But those in the tree diagram command facility didn't need to look up towards the sky.

The fact the many computer screens had repeatedly said Signal lost told them what happened.

Despite being cornered, by someone with the 4th's Meltdowner powers and a group of black op agents with guns pointing towards The Railgun. She remained fixated on the screen, shocked more deeply about what to do regarding the sister's project. How was she going to save them now? So much so she ignored the mutterings of those behind her relating to the destruction of tree diagram.

"Well, that was a quick decision. Which isn't any surprise since you fucked yourself over now little girl." A man said in a white scientist coat, who stood out with his short spiky blonde hair and his tattoo on the left side of his face. "My name is Kihara Amata... Miss Mikoto Misaka, The Railgun of Tokiwadai." Kihara Amata said as Mikoto slowly turned to him after hearing her name.

She looked at the guy with a distance expression as he continued.

"I don't care if you're a level five, you have done it now. The acts of terrorism you committed on various lab facilities and now the destruction of Tree Diagram. The order has already been that you're too much of reliability to this city. The fact they sent an early model of this unit to support me to capture you initially just shows how much their patience is thin with your activities..." Kihara Amata said with a rather creepy smile as she steps forward taking a gun from one of his men.

He then pointed it towards Mikoto.

"Run... little girl... run. Make this fun for me, since if I capture you too soon, then I may just torture you until you die. So run... run as fast as you can, since the darkness of this city is coming for your life... MIKOTO MISAKAAA!" Kihara said sinisterly as Mikoto suddenly flicked a coin in the air, which made the Rensa step forward to intercept but she didn't aim for Kihara. As suddenly she launched a Railgun into the side of the room, smashing through and covering everything with dust.

With a brush of the Rensa's hand, the dust quickly vanished under a strange power and when their sight was clear it had become apparent the Railgun had escaped. "Excellent, this is only going to make it much more fun." Kihara Amata said as he touched the communication piece in his ear. "Group 1 and 2 follow the spoiled rich girl. I don't care how long it takes and what method you guys use. Shoot on sight you hear me? Don't even give her a chance to rest. We'll show this city that not even level fives can deny us."

 **August 28th,**

 **2pm**

A week has past since the destruction of tree diagram, Kihara Amata entered the office of one Keitz Nokieben. Who was the security advisor of the level six shift project and helped organised the ambush at the Tree diagram control facility. He hadn't counted on the destruction of the supercomputer itself.

To make sure nothing else happened to the level six shift he had called back Amata to get an update on The Railgun. He seemed to have sat down on the opposite side of the desk in a way, which he was clearly the one in charge and not of the guy who had brought him in.

"Kihara, you do understand why you are here aren't you? Despite the kill order for The Railgun, she still managed to destroy another three labs the other day. Weren't you suppose to deal with her by now? I can't afford any more screws up this late in the game." Keitz explained to which with a rather sinister laugh. Kihara continued not long afterwards.

"You don't have to worry about your pet project with my former student now. She is honestly in no condition to act so bluntly against our interests anymore. Since not long after that incident, the various underworld groups known as ITEM, SCHOOL and the likes of MEMBER have also been tasked with tracking her down. The damage she has caused to Academy City, the Tree diagram and your project can no longer be overlooked. You do realise what it means when we lost that supercomputer? Scientific development has been slowed at a predicted ten-year rate. At least we have a replacement being currently built, but it still take some years, since nothing of Tree diagram survived."

Keitz looked wry, since despite bring this guy in the first place he never liked anyone who called themselves the Kihara. And Amata's words prove it since he knew that a team had been sent to space not long ago, to recover the remnant which had indeed survive. A replacement for Tree diagram could be down in a year and not many which this Kihara had claimed. He is clearly trying to manipulate the situation for his own enjoyment.

"Well I do hope you have things under control, experiment number 10,922 is about to take place later today. The less interruptions will make this whole mess get completed sooner." Keitz responded ignoring his worries for now and also revealing the advancement of the level six shift since a week ago. "Though this boy seems to been getting too involved as of late with the sisters and not ignoring that those who had known The Railgun had to be put down. And that judgement girl has been terribly stubborn. But not something we can't control as long The Railgun is taken out soon." Keitz explains who looked at Kihara seriously.

"So have you finished playing your game of cat and mouse? Since the three times, you allowed her to escape has cost us greatly and the more this escalates, the higher chance **_he_ ** will get involved" Keitz asked to which Kihara once again laughed but it felt empty.

"I'm sorry, I just enjoy seeing that spoilt little girl see the harsh reality of how things work. To watch her increasing sense of despair as the project continues has been a delight and her many attempts to escape our grasps have been rather smart I must admit. But she faces the complete darkness of this city and it will not be long until she gets consumed. The funniest thing about this whole situation is that she doesn't dare to leave the city since that would mean abandoning the sisters. She cannot leave, and she cannot ask for help from her friends, or they turn out like that one girl in the hospital right now. That rich girl who's father had built many of the armoured suits? Kongou Industries is the company name." Amata said who took out various documents from beneath his white coat and placed them on the desk.

"These documents are of the agents we are going to bring into corner The Railgun." Amato said which Keitz showed some genuine interest had picked one up after the other and scanned through them. He had an idea of how to counter The Railgun's abilities due to working on the project for so long. But nothing to him stood out as he went through one after the other, until he reached the second from lost document which caught him by surprise.

"Precognition... " He mumbled to which Amata heard clearly due to being so close. "Ah that must be Takashi Mitsugi's file. He's part of the WOLF organisation, which are a group of trained Lone killers often hired by Hound Dog to take out targets which are beyond the normal capability of my group. They usually level four Espers brought up from a young age in that profession, and that guy is a good one. Firearms, gadgets, blades, and explosives. The guy is willing to go to any length to succeed and survive his missions. This always seems to work out thanks to his Precognition ability, but that, of course, has its limits. So it's not like can consistently use it without any drawback." Amata explained while Keitz continued to read his document, which explained further things about this peculiar esper.

Like how he had been part of the organisation since he first entered Academy City and comes from a tradition Japanese family which specialises in sword crafting. Mitsugi was a well-known family name now that Keitz thinks about it since he heard the family had even crafted swords which can cut through all known metals in the world today.

"It says he had made a few requests to leave the organisation," Keitz said reading the document to which made Amata bat an eye to this piece of information. "Yeah, but that's why we were given his services by his organisation free of charge. We can just keep throwing him into dangerous missions until he kicks the bucket. As it seems those bastards don't like paying end of contract fees and so much, so they highly suggested that he get put against The Railgun. Especially since the girl has been forced to abandon the no killing policy she had some days ago. Since then we have been losing agents left, right and centre, so they just see this chance of getting rid of their unwanted pawn. But his sense of self-preservation is so strong, that I don't see him dying anytime soon which is a good thing for Hound dog. Since we can use him as much, we like free of charge... " Kihara Amata said with such a happy expression it slightly disturbed Keitz and in turn asked Kihara a question to get this meeting over with.

"How long will it take for you to deal with The Railgun, with these people here." He asked pointed towards the documents on his desks. "Well, of course, that all depends on that girl's luck. But I can say it should all be over tonight."

 **August 28th, 11:20 pm**

 **District 22**

The sound of gunfire echoed throughout the district, overpowering the noise of dogs barking and groups of men shouting as a massive operation was underway. Mikoto, who was their target barely escaped the barrages of bullets and headed into the maze of factories with so many twists and turns it would be almost impossible to escape without a map. She had no choice.

However, it seemed she had been tricked and cornered in this district after she trusted that shopkeeper in the Garden of Learning. Leaving with another sense of betrayal, she blindly ran through the maze hoping for just a break. Just for a small break as she has been on the run for an entire week and the last time she slept was forty-eight hours ago. She was going to take refuge in the Garden of Learning once more, but again she had been betrayed without any mercy for her situation.

She can't simply go to her friends for help. That much had already proven on what they do if she gets got them involved. The fact Kongou from Tokiwadai has been in a coma-like state since she stumbled on the trouble Mikoto was in had been a clear warning to The Railgun. She had no choice but to keep her friends out of it. She didn't want any of them to get involved anyway, and Kongou's involvement was a huge regret on her mind.

She couldn't even try to nurse her back to health; She had to get moving to avoid anyone else got involved.

Her constant running back and forward trying to stay alive while also trying to stop the sisters project had left her completed exhausted and on the verge of breaking. Well, that may have already happened as she was forced to take lives in the past forty eights hours.

Her overuse of her powers was clearly showing as she didn't have the strength anymore even to fire a Railgun.

So all she could do is run and hope that she can lose her pursers in this maze of factories. She only knew of one more safe place she can take refuge and she didn't want to be followed there. That hope of a break if she does make it was the only thing that motivated Mikoto at this point.

There was no way she could have been tracked now anyway. She had made sure Hound dog no longer had her sent to their database. So if she continued to make progress into District 22 for a while longer, she should be able to make her way to distract ten and...

"Got ya you little bitch." Said a boy of her age, who was donning a black ops suit as they came out of now. He slammed his hand in Mikoto's chest by surprise, which not only knocked her back but further sent her flying as a pocket of air was created and made her crash against a large metal pipe. Causing her to cough her blood as she hit her back hard and despite her pain, it only made her angry.

The fact the person to find her right now had Kongou's powers of all people. It was like someone was making fun of her regrets without her knowing. But what could she do? She was totally exhausted and struggled to run, let alone use her ability to fight right now. The bruises, cuts and the rough state of her clothes showed just how much she had been struggling.

She looked down as if she was defeated and under the cover of her bangs, she started to cry from the hell she was enduring. All the while the one who attacked her had slowly walked up to Mikoto with a guarded stance. He thought he had knocked her out or at least by the way she was acting showed she was ready to give up.

As the attacker attempted to grab Mikoto, she quickly grabbed him the first chance she got and unleash a powerful shock. Sparks flew everywhere, and the sound of it echoed throughout this metal shell of a maze she was in.

In a matter of moments, the guy who had attacked Mikoto was repealed from her like two magnets of the same charge had just came in contact. Sent flying the man crashed into the ground, not even moving. Burned all over from the sheer amount of volts unleashed by Mikoto it was clear he was dead.

The guy was dead, there was no doubt about it but also what was finished was her ability. She can barely even make a sparkle let alone use it to defend herself.

She had reached her limit and possibly the end of her life as her eyes struggled to stay open. She swore in her weakening conciseness as somebody in a much slimmer black combat uniform approached the scene. She wasn't sure how to describe the guy, but the way he acted made it seem he wasn't focused on catching her... no..

He had just checked the body of the guy who she just killed before slowly walking over and despite her fragile state. She tried to move in a last ditch attempt to escape, but before she can even make progress, a gun was fired. It pierced into the metal pipe close to her head as a warning for her to stay still.

The sound of a gunshot being so close had allowed her conciseness to revitalise long enough to see who stand before her and he seemed similar to the one she had killed.

The difference has he had short messy black hair and dazzling green eyes which made him stand out in the darkness. He looked roughly the same age as Mikoto, but apparently seemed more mature in some manner. Maybe she felt that way because due to the fact the rather professional stance he held a handgun in one hand pointed towards her while slowly drawing a magnificent katana from his sheath on his back.

Yet, for some reason, she didn't feel like her life was in danger.

The look of confusion in this boy's eyes had given her that thought, and her assumption would be confirmed as the boy spoke.

"What... You are The Railgun... Why... would someone like you allowed themselves to get dragged down to the depths of hell?" The boy asked Mikoto just why she got herself in her current situation. He didn't exactly give her time to respond as he continued further proving his confusion.

"Just what the hell is going on?"


	2. Within the depths of Darkness

**District 22**

 **August 28th, 11:43 pm**

"Just what the hell is going on?"

The boy asked with a profound sense of confusion which The Railgun had picked up on. She would have answered the boy without any delay normally, but the numbness throughout her body was setting in as she laid there against the metal pipe. Her consciences begun to fade once more before she even got a chance to respond, but that wouldn't last long as the boy once again fired a bullet right next to Mikoto.

Again the sound of a gunshot brought Mikoto back to consciousness as she suddenly found the boy much closer than before. Still with the gun drawn and the Kanata now pointing downwards to the ground. He still seemed confused, and this time Mikoto felt she understood just the scope of why he was feeling that way. The look in the boy's eyes, the tone of his voice and the expression he had was something she had seen before in the last few days. The last time she had looked in the mirror she had seen it for herself and that was the feeling of being betrayed.

The boy looked uneasily towards the fried corpse next to him. "If I was here first then that could have been.. Bastards.." He'd thought just as on cue he heard a chilling voice, which only brought him constant frustration. "I shouldn't be surprised that you found the target first." Said a much deeper voice coming from someone who wore the same outfit as the boy, but was completely bald headed with bright red eyes, who had stopped for a moment just behind the confused boy and glanced at him briefly. "Right, Takashi Mitsugi?" In response to his words, Mitsugi looked away towards the ground trying to avoid eye contact with the guy. "Heh.." The new arrival said as he then barged past him without a care in the world and walked towards The Railgun with a creepy expression which only sent a shiver down her spine.

"You're just too slow Kou..." Mitsugi responded while putting his handgun away and did nothing as Kou suddenly pulls on Mikoto's hair without a sense of consideration for the girl. She had screamed out in pain, and her cries seemed not to make Kou bat an eye he continues to manhandle the weakened Railgun. In fact the crazed looked on Kou's face showed he'd rather enjoy girls being helpless to resist. "Well, I'm not slow enough for this part, right? Misaka Mikoto!?" Kou said with a creepy smile as he begun to pull at Mikoto's clothes with a clear malicious intent. "I've been waiting to do this for a while now!" Kou said as continued to try and restrain Mikoto down to get his way. And Mitsugi remained standing there only reacting to the words Kou had just said. "So you knew who we were targeting from the beginning?" Mitsugi asked as was still looking away from them and even as Mikoto was bashed against the metal pipe during the struggle, he remained unmoved by her plight.

"Of course... We all were told about The Railgun before we were given the job. Aihana was also told, but he didn't seem to care about it whatsoever, even though he is also a level five." Kou revealed which only made Mitsugi smile and all the while Kou continues to tear at Mikoto's clothes. Her screams had lessened to the point she had just given up struggling against him. " Now I understand... Hey, Kou, there is one more thing I need to tell you." Mitsugi said as he took a step forward and his further interruption only made Kou feel frustrated as he let go of Mikoto suddenly to confront him.

"Look you need-"

With a blinding stroke with his blade Mitsugi sliced through Kou's left arm as he turned with frightening ease, but what truly stunned Kou was the look in Mitsugi's eyes which glimmered with anger and frustration. A kick followed which threw Kou against the metal pipe Mikoto was leaning against as blood sprayed everywhere and even on the Railgun. She was unsure of what was going on as everything started to blur when Kou had his way.

But the blood which splattered across her face brought her back to reality.

Confused she watched Mitsugi follow Kou who begun crawling on the ground with just one arm. He gritted his teeth as Kou attempted to get on his feet while not thinking about the loss of his arm to subdue the pain mentally. But that was denied when Mitsugi stamped on his right ankle brutally making Kou slam face first into the ground and only so Mitsugi can continue where he left off.

"I've always hated how you treated girls. So consider this an end to our partnership you slimy bastard." Mitsugi said as he pulled out his handgun.

"Mitsugi think about what yo-"

The sound of gunfire silenced Kou for good as his head was shot through. An uneasy calm swept through the area which only was disturbed by the distant barking of dogs. Hearing this Mitsugi put his weapons away as he knelt down taking some metal tags away from Kou's lifeless body which was around his neck. Putting those away he took off his tags and dropped them on Kou's body.

But that wasn't all as he already decided the next course of action, Mitsugi takes out a few small devices which resembled a stationary explosive. He placed them on each side of the alleyway and then also one on Kou's body itself before turning his attention to Mikoto.

Who remained sitting there against the large metal pipe stunned from she had seen and experienced.

Her school jumper was torn from Kou actions, and few of her shirt's buttons was broken. She was in a terrible state, and her mental stability was probably in even a worse situation. She was one of the seven level fives and the third strongest in the entire city. But even the level fives were prone to the overuse of their powers, and she was no exception. Kou had exploited the fact she couldn't fight back with her ability anymore since without her ability The Railgun of Tokiwadai was nothing but a little girl.

Mitsugi had thought about this as he made his way over to Mikoto and knelt down to her while looking at her carefully trying to figure out what to do next. Killing her right now would be so simple, and he could report it as if nothing had happened. The organisation he belonged too wouldn't care much about him killing other agents, since they encourage competition between each other and that even means to the death if it had come to it.

But something had left a bad taste in his mouth, which made it no longer seem right to continue as he normally had day after day. And casually he reached out with his left hand with the attention of wiping the blood from Mikoto's face, but she flinched the moment he had gotten closer, which told Mitsugi just exactly how much of a fragile state she was in right now.

She had looked so frightened and was rather disheartening to see such a person to look that way.

"If you are going to kill me, then get it over and done with, " she said with no sense of hope in her eyes and looked away from Mitsugi with a real sense of regret. "There is just no point continuing with this farce any longer. " She continued which didn't sway his emotions at all on the subject and stood up to walk towards the guy she fried earlier. She then watched as he took the vest of the dead man and threw it in her direction.

She didn't understand what he was trying to do at first, but the fact he hasn't killed her yet made it horribly clear when he threw the vest over.

"Wh..Why?" She asked with an expression that only pissed Mitsugi off.

"Don't get me, wrong girl, I'm not doing this for you. Since killing you right now would probably save me a lot of heart ache, but you're far more useful to me alive than dead. So I'm offering you a choice right now." Mitsugi said as he walked over to pick up the vest and properly hand it to Mikoto so she can use it to cover up her torn clothes. "You can help me by acting like a magnet to draw out someone, and I can offer you shelter from the darkness that you're not accustomed. And if I suddenly feel helpful I could help you with whatever hole you dug yourself in... Do we have a deal?" Mitsugi asked to which Mikoto was unsure how to take his offer since it wasn't the first time she been offered shelter only to be stabbed in the back. "Trust me if I wanted to kill you, then we wouldn't be having this conversation right now and besides what other choice do you have right now? I can just kill you and end this farce which you called it." Mitsugi continued trying to reassure Mikoto in her decision making, and he was right.

What choice did she have at this moment of time? She was unable even to generate a spark, and her intended destination was far away in district ten. District twenty-two at this moment of time was locked down in an attempt to capture her so it would be foolish not to accept help.

Was she willing to drag another person into her trouble? This boy seemed awfully confident in his ability, and he appeared to be acute to the harshness of this side of Academy City. So maybe what happened to Kongou would not happen to this guy? She wasn't sure, but she had to be selfish and accept his offer if she has any chance to survive tonight.

She didn't say a word in response and only nodded while taking the vest from Mitsugi. It took a moment for her to slip the vest on, which she had assumed the purpose was to hide her torn clothes and to protect her from stray bullets. Which made sense since he didn't offer his own since he needs one to protect himself.

"So.. what is the plan right now?" She asked looking up at him and seeing the absence of confusion compared to earlier. Now that it was just him alone and she once again felt her life wasn't in danger, well at least she hoped this was the case

"Well, that depends if you can still walk or not?" Mitsugi asked pulling out a trigger device from one of his vest's pockets. "Errrm. I can try, but I can't promise I'll be fast enough for you or not." She responded which got a heavy sigh from Mitsugi "Then this is going to be one long night." Mitsugi said knowing he can't defend Mikoto effectively from her pursuers and carry her at the same time.

The sound of the dogs barking and distant shouting had alarmed them and made it obvious they had ran out of time. "Well no time to discuss this at this moment of time." Mitsugi said who suddenly gave Mikoto the trigger while instantly picking her up in his arms with ease.

"What the hell are-"

"Just push the damn button will you!" Shouted Mitsugi letting his feet pushed him off the ground with incredible physical strength as he jumped over the fried body while at the same time Mikoto had reacted to his words by pushing the trigger button. Causing the three stationary explosion devices to detonate, making the ground tremble from the aftershock as Kou's body exploded into pieces along with the factory walls, which collapses into the small alleyway between each other.

Hiding the scene where the recent events had transpired under a tonne of rubble and dust.

Allowing both Mitsugi and Mikoto to get a head start in their escape. And they also had one more ploy up their sleeve, no one chasing the Railgun tonight had any idea she was now with someone. Which was the greatest strand of luck she had stumbled upon as she couldn't use her ability right now was due to exhaustion.

However, for some reason, she felt like she was in the best position possible to escape the district alive tonight. It was nothing short of a miracle that in her dire moment, this boy had offered her a way out of her predicament. Well only for tonight, since she had no clue of what was going to happen next.

But she decided it was best to go down that road when she got there.

She never saw not once his eyes glance towards her as he carried her away in his arms. He was so focused on running and carrying her to safety that she had thought he was like a well-oiled machine. Like he was perfectly crafted and put together for the sole purpose of surviving in this type of world. This was especially shown when he often backtracks down certain alleyways mumbling about the area being patrolled by other groups. Or when they both heard the chatter of distant pursuers or the barking of dogs, the boy hightailed it out of there with enough time to create reasonable distance.

As he was doing all the work, she looked up towards him to get a better look of his notable facial features. His short black hair which had acted as a strong contrast to the sharp glare of his green eyes. She felt bewildered and more so when he suddenly came to a stop as his green eyes had glowed brightly at the same time. She was still being held, but Mikoto managed to see the general appearance of the area they stopped in and that was one of a much larger alleyway which seemed to be a storage container area. Looking back at the boy, she had noticed the distant stare and the strong sense of confusion when his eyes dimmed. Before suddenly being chucked to the ground without any care and only managed to stop herself from slamming head first into the ground from a bodily reflex. She still had fallen flat to the ground on her side from exhaustion as she noticed the boy had thrown an oddly shaped grenade towards the direction of the metal shutters just in front of them.

There was a sudden loud boosh as the metal shutters were suddenly blasted open under the terrifying power of a green light, which Mikoto had recognised much to her horror. Takitsubo Rikou, Kinuhata Saiai had stood at the left side, and Frenda Seivelun stood at the right of Mugino Shizuri who was in the middle with her hand stretched out. The fourth-ranked level five, the Meltdowner had a menacing expression on her face which made it clear that she was here to take out The Railgun.

This was supposed to be their ambush, but the Meltdowner's sudden entrance hadn't stopped the grenade Mitsugi had thrown seconds ago which finally had entered the centre of ITEM's vision and ignited. A bright light shined brightly just as Mitsugi looked the other way in preparation and under the shattering explosive sound he ran towards Mikoto as the members of ITEM were blinded. Mugino Shizuri, who was furious started to fire the Meltdowner ability consistently with no sense of direction.

"What the hell you bastard! Show yourself!" She shouted as Mitsugi approached Mikoto which only left him confused. Because right there next to the wall she was leaning against she had started shaking out of fear and quietly he heard her mutter under her breath. "I didn't.. mean to... it just... happened... it.. just..."

Mitsugi just glanced at her wondering what could have caused this reaction and only shook his head in mere seconds after realising they couldn't just stay here any longer. It didn't matter which level five it was to Mitsugi since he knew the survival rate was extremely low against any of them and more so when he had to carry dead weight. The fact she was refusing to move for some reason out of fear. Mitsugi had decided to take matters into his own hands, and with frightening accuracy, he smacked The Railgun into her temple which knocked Mikoto out instantly.

It would be a few more minutes before the members of ITEM were able to recover from the flash grenade, only to find The Railgun and whoever was with her had disappeared.

"Takitsubo did you notice anyone before we got blinded?" Mugino asked who looked severely pissed. The only reply she got was a shaking of Takitsubo's head which only annoyed the Meltdowner even more she continued. "Someone had figured out we were coming here to intercept The Railgun and that means somebody had betrayed us or we are dealing with an annoying insect. The fact they were able to shut down Takitsubo's stalker AIM ability before we even appeared... those bastards. "

"Someone was super seriously predicting our moves," Saiai said with a nonchalant attitude but slowly had turned her head away. Only for Frenda to push past with an annoyed expression since she hated missing out on reward money. "Shouldn't we look into this Mugino?" She asked to which Mugino nodded her head in agreement before leading the others away back into the darkness of district twenty-two.

 **Later that Night..**

At the scene of the explosion caused by Mitsugi earlier in the night, Kihara Amata stood in front the pile of rubble as members of hound dog were digging through the mess. He was furious with what he was hearing, and the reason for it was obviously clear as the reports of MIA and KIA were read out. He didn't care about the number of people killed or even the one that was missing, but the fact that his free meal ticket of assassinations was no longer available to him.

Takashi Mitsugi's dog tags had been discovered at the scene and now in Kihara's possession. But even though the evidence pointed to his death there was something which didn't sit right with Kihara Amata.

Not with somebody who had Precognition ability, it was foolish to assume straight away that he was dead. But what was ultimately clear to him was that The Railgun had escaped their hunt tonight which had angered him greatly because he been made a liar. Putting the dog tags away he exchanged them for his phone to report what had happened.

"So how did the 10,922 experiment go today? Keitz Nokieben." Kihara Amata asked the moment his call was answered. However, his words were only met with an apparent sigh of disappointment from Keitz who called Kihara out. "So I assume you didn't manage to stop The Railgun." Which only made Kihara smile as he responded to his quick-witted colleague. "Are you sure you're not an esper?"

"Kihara Amata that is enough! You do realise that if there is any more damage to this experiment, it will have to be called off. I will not be taking the fall for it, and you can consider this a warning." Keitz reacted out of anger, he had dealt with Kihara Amata long enough, and his patience had run thin. But Kihara smirked as if he had expected such a reaction. "Then let me make you understand, I don't care about what my former pet is doing for you guys over there. What I care about is fulfilling the task I've been assigned, and that sadly means reporting to you what happened. Now that is out of the way; we need to discuss something which will mostly likely affect both of us." Kihara said as he watched one of the hound dog members recover partial body parts from under the rubble.

"What do you know about Precognition?" He asked to which only got silence from Keitz who didn't know how to respond to this ridiculous line of questioning Kihara didn't care as he continued for him. "Nothing is understood in the field of Precognition, and that has lead to people ultimately underestimating the power. So don't you think somebody would take advantage of that way of thinking to example fake ones own death." Kihara asked who not trusted what he found at the scene, or maybe it was like he couldn't believe his free assassination tool was now gone. "What makes you say that Kihara?" Keitz asked from the other side the phone who was informed by Amata about the KIA and MIA reports regarding tonight's operation. "I understand your suspicions, but wouldn't it be dangerous to assume that he hadn't died? The others you had mentioned have dangerous abilities more so than precognition. What if somebody had indeed taken advantage of the way of thinking when it comes to precognition? And the way you think Kihara? They could be leading you into a trap be forcing you to search anything owned or related by Takashi Mitsugi. Wasting your time long enough for them to escape the senses of Hound Dog. It's best for you to take the blood found at the scene and get it analysed for identification." Keitz said to which surprisingly enough Amata had listened rather carefully, but he still had that excited expression. "Hahaha... This is excellent, so someone is trying to play a game, and at this moment they have the advantage. I shall take my time and get the blood analysed but they bett-"

"Full control..." A voice said interrupting Kihara as the air became dense around him, the screams of his men echoed throughout the alleyway as someone in the same black ops uniform torn through his fellows with brutal strikes that emphasised efficiency and powerful strikes. He was like a dark shadow that showed no mercy to anything that came in contact with it and also he was incredibly fast.

And for once this entire time that this manhunt had been ongoing, the smirk on Kihara has turned into a frown as he pulled a gun from his side and fired in front as that same figure turned to him.

It was pointless the bullet stopped in midair just before the aggressor who grabbed it with his hand and swung it forward charged with an invisible force giving off a much louder sound than from ever being fired from a gun and it pierced right into Kihara Amata's shoulder. "Ahh.." Amata gritted his teeth but had barely any chance to react as the aggressor dressed in the black ops uniform had grabbed his neck and started to apply pressure without hesitation.

Faced with nothing but the soulless visual of the black ops helmet, Kihara struggled as an invisible force restrained his body at the aggressor's mercy. And then without prompt, the attacker had spoken.

"End this farce... Before I do it for you..." the voice behind the mask had no sense of emotion and seemed to be reading from a script like some machine. And Kihara who was struggling to breath had fought to speak out knowing exactly who it was behind it.

"Ai-Aihana Etsu!" once that name was pronounced the attacker had thrown Kihara to the side like some discarded trash and continued while he walked away.

"You have been warned!" he had said in English before disappearing back into the shadows.

* * *

 **Author Notes:** Greetings and Salutations, never really planned to do author notes but I thought it was needed to address something I noticed upon uploading chapter one. A lot of people are concerned really about possible pairings in the future and you all have your preferences. I'll tell you now that whatever does happen its unlikely to be popular for everyone, so its something I don't intend to make as a focus. No matter what the future pairings will be I will attempt to make it seem real, built up over time and not something that suddenly happens. But I'll promise you now Mitsugi isn't pairing with Misaka.

Anyway, that's it really if you want me to do author notes to discuss anything let me know. But if there isn't any demand for it there is unlikely to be author notes in future chapter. Thanks for Reading :)


	3. Actors upon the Stage

**Chapter 3 - In** which all main characters are introduced

 **District 7;**

 **One Week Earlier on August 21st, 8:20 pm**

Accurate coordinates of the area were X-228561, Y-568714. The start time was at exactly 8:30 pm Japanese Standard Time. The unit number to be used in this experiment was #10032. The purpose was to find a way to fight so that the usage of reflection would not be applied.

Misaka Imouto went through the scenario in her mind to which she would be killed, but the thought of her untimely demised didn't inspire a tragic expression or even a depressed one. There was no sense of fear or hatred on her face. Misaka Imouto, like all the other sisters, was truly expressionless.

If someone else was in her situation that they probably would be a nervous wreck and increasingly so as the experiment approached. But this doesn't mean Imouto never understood the value of a living being's life. It's just she can't apply that simple concept to herself.

"The Misaka units are products created for this experiment. Artificial bodies with artificial minds. Laboratory animals with the unit price of 180,000 yen. And with the right collection of chemicals Misaka can be reproduced with a touch of a button when using the right equipment." Misaka Imouto thought. She understood why she was willing to sacrifice her life since they could recreate as many Misakas as needed.

"The experiment would take place here." A sudden voice spoke from the darkness, it came from the male student who was standing away from the lights in the area and any possible cameras. Though Imouto couldn't see them properly, there was no need to confirm who it was as Imouto had already met them. At least she can access the memories of the units which had previously come in contact with this person.

But first looking around, the description she previously received had been accurate. The location was similar to a transit bus garage, and it was a place where many trains were serviced and where they were kept after the last train ran. An area about the size of a school's grounds was covered in the same gravel as a train track, and over ten rails were lined up next to each other. Lined up at the end of the tracks were garages with large shutters over them making them look like rental storage areas at a port. Surrounding the entire switchyard were scores of metal containers used on freight trains. The containers were piled up like building blocks, and they clearly compared to three story building in height. The disorderly piles made the area around the switchyard seem like a three-dimensional maze.

At this time of night, the switchyard wasn't a popular place since after school when the last train leaves it becomes quickly abandoned. Even with over two million students in this entire city, she was pretty sure there was no risk of interruption at this time. Confirming this observation and analysis of the location, Imouto, had turned to the boy just standing outside the light.

"This one is pleased to see you, though Misaka believes this would also be called the moment to feel 'regret' says Misaka." Imouto had said with no sense of emotion in those words, but it seemed there was still something the unit wanted to do before this time. And despite this interest shown the boy remained in silent for a moment before speaking up.

"We're both tools, we don't need any reason for regret. Fulfil the conditions of this experiment and help this city move on to the next stage." saying this the boy had started to leave, carefully staying out of sight of cameras and any traces of light before he had continued as he left. "There is a purpose in even our lives and I'm sure soon enough you sisters will realise it."

With those parting words, Imouto wouldn't be left alone for long as before the deadline Accelerator had appeared into sight and kept walking until he was just standing fifty yards away. Despite being near the one who shall end her life, Imouto still showed no sign of fear or hesitation.

"Time is 8:25 by my clock, you're a few minutes early. So I'm assuming you have no objection to being my next target for this experiment?" Accelerator asked with a sense of curiosity.

"Yes, I am Misaka serial Number 100032, Misaka identifies herself. But before we begin wouldn't it be wise for you to verify my password to make sure I'm part of the experiment? Misaka responsibly advises."

Her words only made Accelerator feel annoyed and yet still tried to continue the conversation. "Honestly I hate to question you when you're so deludingly performing your role in an experiment to increase my power. But you strike me as unnaturally relaxed, given the situation. You sure your mind isn't occupied with something else?" Accelerator asks with that same curious tone.

It was slight, but the sister looked briefly towards where that boy had stood previously before responding in that same emotionless tone.

"The phrase 'something else' is too vague for me to comprehend. Misaka replies with some sense of confusion. Three minutes and twenty seconds remained until the experiment is scheduled to begin. Are you ready? Misaka inquiries seeking confirmation."

With a rather uncaring smile, Accelerator responded. "I don't think I'll understand how you can be so willing to throw your life away. My life is more important to me than anything else in the world. Which is why my desire for greater power will never diminish. So it doesn't matter if I've killed ten or ten thousand in this sick experiment as long I'm getting stronger your deaths are nothing to me. I'll laugh away each kill."

"You say you cannot understand Misaka but Misaka also finds your behaviour confusing. Misaka replies honestly. You are already one of the strongest level five within Academy City. You are in a position where nobody else can touch you, so there is no need for you to become more powerful. Misaka states reasonably."

"The Strongest huh? That's true but how have people arrived at that evaluation of me? They named me the strongest level five because they fought me and got beat. That's the basis of my classification right there. I'm supposedly top of the heap because a bunch of dimwits thought to themselves 'Hey I think I will pick a fight with that guy as it will be fun to see what he really can do.' Not knowing that what I have ever done is nothing but a mercy compared to what else is out there. " Accelerator said with a much more twistedly crazed expression. "And that's why I need to get stronger, strong enough so I can handle everything that's out there and to achieve my plans. So my current power is insignificant. I don't want people to think fighting me would be an interesting challenge. I want the very idea going up against me to be unthinkable, something that nobody would dare." He continued to explain. Once he had finished speaking Misaka Imouto replied straight afterwards.

"One minute and thirty seconds until the experiment commence. Are you certain that you are ready to begin? Misaka asked again seeking confirmation."

He suddenly stretched both of his arms out in disbelief; he was bothered by the sister's response to his words.

"Huh, I thought we would be able to kill a little time before we got to it. But this is just hopeless, and there is no point trying to hold a rational conversation with you." Accelerator said, stepping forward out of the darkness. He began readying himself to begin the experiment. "Okay then are you ready? It's almost time for you to die you substandard factory reject." Accelerator asked as Misaka Imouto remained unmoving with her emotionless expression.

"The time is eight twenty-nine and forty-five seconds. We will now commence trial number 10032. Will test subject Accelerator please take his position. Misaka instructs politely." Misaka Imouto then immediately pulled down her goggles onto her face in preparation for the experiment.

Dead on 8:30 pm, the train yard had become a battlefield.

And almost instantly Imouto leapt backwards as she unleashed a barrage of bluish-white flashes of electricity which lit up the dark switch yard. Which had no initial effect on Accelerator's stance whatsoever as he stood there with his usual grin.

The distance between them was now roughly ten meters which made Accelerator smile. "Hah. What? Are you just walking around casually without a plan? If you like pain that much, then how about I make you cry so much you would shrivel up and die all on your own." He said with a psychotic grin as his arms spread out. He bent over and closed in on Misaka Imouto like he was a carnivorous beast.

He did not need to think about defence. In fact, he did not even need to think about attacking. For someone who could reflect all kinds of attacks and therefore could kill his opponent just by touching them, a fight was nothing more than thinking of the fastest and more definite way of touching his opponent.

This also meant as a result of being able to reflect all kinds of attacks, there was no way of stopping his legs from bringing him closer. Misaka Imouto was faced with that unreasonable amount of violence that levelled on someone driving a tank into the middle of a group of demonstrators.

"Ah!?" Accelerator cried with disappointment.

Misaka Imouto took steps back to put some distance between herself and Accelerator as if she was fleeing from his advance. Misaka Imouto paid close attention to the situation around her and continued to flee back sometimes to the right and then to the left. The carnivorous beast that was Accelerator chased after her with a look of pure boredom in his eyes.

"Come on you waste of flesh and bones. This is just pathetic! What the hell are you hoping to do? No matter how much time you tried to buy yourself, there isn't going to be a miracle!" Accelerator shouted attempting to frighten the sister.

Misaka Imouto was not listening. She did nothing but put distance between her and her enemy while keeping that enemy in her range of vision. Accelerator felt like the blood vessels in his head were going to burst, but then he noticed the surrounding air began to arc and flicker with blue and white light as it suddenly started cracking with an intensity that clearly was electrifying it.

"Oh, come the hell on! Surely you know that's fucking useless! I'm not going to play this senseless game of your pathetic attempt to resist much longer!" Accelerator laughed mockingly. He could reflect any attack that was thrown at him and Misaka Imouto was purposefully not firing the electricity at him out of fear of that. The sparks hissed violently as they whirled around him like a symphony composed of electric beams which created a massive amount of inductive force in the air, yet no actual attack came in contact with him at any moment since the battle started.

"What is with her?" Accelerator wondered as he gritted his teeth, but then he noticed that he was short of breath. At first, he thought he had used up too much oxygen by talking while running around, but it was too odd for that. A sharp stench set off alarm bells in his head.

"Tonight is a windless night." Misaka Imouto's voice echoed throughout the still air of the switchyard. "As such, Misaka may have a chance of winning, calls out Misaka" Who once again ran away from Accelerator. "Ohh I see, Ozone? The oxygen in the air could be broken apart with electricity. Oxygen molecules were normally formed from two oxygen atoms, but once the oxygen atoms split apart, they had a disposition towards connecting in threes and ozone were two different things. Breathing it in would not do one's lungs well for too long. It was toxic..." Accelerator thought walking out the affected area only to get the same electrifying air again by the Misaka sister.

No attack would reach Accelerator, but that did not change the fact that he was a human that breathed in oxygen and breathed out carbon dioxide. If all the oxygen were removed from his surroundings, then he would suffer from oxygen deprivation. Which means Imouto did not need to approach Accelerator. In fact, it was imperative that she kept her distance from him so that his attacks could not hit her while she continued to rob him of his oxygen.

"That's very good, you clever little thing. You really are going to give me run for my money. Ha ha! Now, this is an excellent change of pace. Since you think after killing ten thousand of you, one would actually come up with some good idea!" Accelerator exclaimed as he chased after Imouto while laughing from enjoyment. Despite the fact that he was being cornered, he was still enjoying himself from the bottom of his heart.

"But there is something you should keep in mind though. Once I catch you this cute little tactic of yours is going to fail spectacularly." Accelerator said as his foot suddenly caused the gravel behind him to explode with an intense amount of force. He had altered the vector for the motion of his foot. It was like a rocket had fired from the bottom of it, he shot seven meters forward like a bullet fired from a gun in one step. Misaka Imouto tried to jump further back, but Accelerator heartlessly flew forward many times faster than she could humanly move.

"You may want to avoid this, or you could die!" Accelerator yelled as he struck her with his left hand. The strike looked gentle as if he simply touched her cheek, but a sickening cracking noise came from Imouto's neck upon receiving the attack. Her vision spun as her entire body spun like a ragdoll before landing on the gravel with an impact so great the gravel surrounding her impact jumped an inch or two before resting back on the cold grey ground.

His attack did all that, but he was still holding back.

"It seems the fun and games are all at an end now. But you know..." Accelerator said wondering how to achieve the game over screen for this unique experiment which he must admit. Not before brutally kicking Imouto in the stomach many times as he thought it through. "We already know about the effects of reversing your blood flow, so let us try something much more simple." Accelerator said as he lightly steps onto Imouto's head which felt like her head was slowly being crushed into the gravel. And despite the pain, she was experiencing she had not once cried out in pain.

"Let's find out exactly just how much pressure it takes to crush the human skull." Accelerator said with a laugh shortly after. It wasn't long before a strange array of pops and cracked could be heard as blood began to leak out of the Imouto's eyes, mouth, and ears from the overwhelming force being placed on her head. It was even less time before the sound of stones fracturing underneath her head as her skull started to crack with a stomach-twisting crunch from this ever growing force her head was being subjected to with each passing second. Her body shook uncontrollably and violently for a few moments, but this did not last as no more than a second or two later the head of Imouto exploded into a crimson mist as small chunks of skin, muscle and various other bits of her head splattered loudly across the ground. A large pool of blood began to form around her now motionless body, yet not even a shred of blood had gotten on Accelerator due to his reflection effortlessly repelled any blood that went his way.

Taking a deep breath Accelerator casually stretched his neck as his expression turned to that one of boredom before walking away like nothing had happened.

While this occurred, Touma had been frantically searching district seven for Mikoto Misaka. Never knowing his search would be fruitless since she had gone missing since the incident at the tree diagram facility earlier that day.

 **Tokiwadai Dorm, District 7**

 **Only three days later at August 23rd, 7:04 pm**

Touma had been searching for Misaka Mikoto for over a day now, frantically searching places he knew she often visits from his encounters with her. Even her sisters hadn't been seen since the 21st of August, and it had only made him more worried. So thinking that Mikoto must have gone back to her dorms by now and so he decided to visit the place once more.

He made sure to ring the correct dorm which belonged to Mikoto being 208.

And just like before but this time with a desperate sense of hope, Kuroko's voice can be heard from over the intercom.

"Is... Oh... you're that same ape again from two days ago. What happened to you? As you suddenly disappeared when I came back. The-"

"Kuroko, I'm sorry but can you tell me if Misaka is there or not?" Touma interrupted to get to the point of this visit and in response, there was a frustrated sigh could be heard briefly and was followed by a silence that lingered until Touma spoke once more." Kuroko?" He asked and finally got an answer "No, she hadn't been seen since August 21st, two days ago. She has already been reported as missing, but every time this is brought up they say she's due to a family situation... Why am I telling you this?"

Kuroko had said with sadness in her voice, the pressure of just waiting had been eating away at her and it was hard for Touma to listen to it. Knowing exactly what was going on with the Level Six Shift project and Radio noise. He can only think the worst had happened and despite not wanting to drag her into danger she should know. He thought it was right for her roommate at least to know exactly of what was going on.

"Kuroko, I believe there is something you need to see," Touma said which was once followed by silence until a ringing sound had notified Touma he was able to come in to visit. He was going to tell her about Level Six Shift project and hopefully between them since she was also a member of judgement. They could figure something out to find exactly where Mikoto had gone missing.

They attempt this as the shadows of the city work against, preventing them from finding out exactly what happened as The Railgun gets hunted the entire time.

 **August 29th, 1:41 am**

In the lonely streets of district seven at night, one shadow continues to move after all the excitement that has happened these past hours. Looking up towards the tall building ahead, the windowless building remained lit even through the night, its light had a mocking glow and a reminder that the higher ups were always watching even at this late hour. But this thought had only served as a distraction to the figure that had approached.

Immediately identified as a Misaka sister, the clone approached the shadow that had stalked the streets at night.

"Misaka would like to ask why you stop? You could've killed the one known as Kihara Amata and stopped this hunt against the original Misaka she explains." the clone asked a good question. To the one she was speaking, Amata's game of cat and mouse was a problem and not because it had endangered Misaka Mikoto's life, but because it can endanger other lives involved. Taking this chance to get a breather, the one who was confronted by a sister had slowly taken off his black op helmet. Under was the face of a young Caucasian male with light brown hair and light blue eyes.

It was clear he wasn't even Japanese but a foreigner whose origins are likely from Europe.

"Showing concern isn't any of your business serial number #14404. The original's usefulness is at an end, so the decision has been made to allow this group involved with Amata to have her terminated. So abandoned any thoughts in that network, that the original will survive her nightmare as if he fails then I will step in." he responded to the sister's words but the clone hadn't moved a muscle and continued unsatisfied with his answer. "You didn't answer this one's question says Misaka." the clone made a point he didn't answer it fully. "Because that Kihara is in league with whoever had authorised the use of the Rensa models. While only a few are currently active, many are about to be deployed in a matter of days. The one whose will I enforce sees them as a threat to the lives of Kamijou Touma and Accelerator who remains in danger as long this game of cat and mouse continues. They're two important tools to the purpose of this city and I will not allow them to die for some girl whose defiance is causing things to spiral out of control. So the reason why Kihara wasn't killed tonight as I need him to lead me to find those behind the scenes." he explained as silence befallen them the sister didn't act out or question his words further and after a moment the boy sighed before turning away.

"If there is nothing el-" the boy was about to ask before being interrupted. "This one would like to try some of Aihana Etsu's famous tea Misaka says revealing the real reason she was here." the sister's sudden topic change often remains a curious note for Etsu but what she asked now wasn't an issue. It would be some time before this unit's role in Radio noise would come up, so there was no reason for her to prepare so suddenly. "Very Well," he said prompting the sister to follow as they head towards the windowless building.


	4. Scars of this Reality

**29th August**

 **7:13am**

The sound of peaceful music enveloped Mikoto's hearing as her consciousness started to wake from its slumber. Slowly her eyes opened as she struggled to keep her head straight and as she began to move, she felt the soft touch of a bed which was comparable to the one back in her dormitory. She felt an odd sense of safety, and for the first time in a good week, she felt not in danger at all. When she finally opened her eyes, she was surprised by what she had found.

It was like a peaceful haven and entirely different from the harsh reality of the underworld. Despite there being no natural light within this studio apartment, the place felt warm and welcoming due to the bright colours which were also helped by the peaceful music playing on a low melody. She located the source of the music which came from one of the latest music players, which was a transparent screen that from a distance was held in place by beautiful crystal artwork and didn't look like an electrical device at all.

Being drawn by the music and she allowed her mind to wander for a moment until the last thing she remembered resurfaced in her mind. "The boy with green eyes, he offered me shelter but for what price? What did he say?" Mikoto thought to herself as she briefly looked down with horror. Only now she had noticed that she had been stripped down to her underwear and immediately she clenched up from embarrassment under the large quilt which had kept her warm.

"Huh... it seems that you have finally awoken," A familiar voice said. It belonged to the person who had stood up from the sofa which was before the large television. The sofa was large enough to hide the fact this boy had been sitting on it, so she hadn't had first seen anyone here. But there he was in a black casual jumper and joggers the same boy from last night. She had only figured it was the same guy from the colour of his eyes, which retained that same sharp glare from last night. She felt embarrassed being in the same room as a boy while only wearing her underwear and it was then she had properly realised she was no longer wearing her shorts. She looked back towards the boy with an angry and embarrassed glare as the crackling sound of her electromaster powers starting to surface.

"You perver-!" she grunted as pain struck her body, she was still exhausted her powers though returned to a certain extent had only highlighted further that her body still needs rest.

"Don't you dare shock me after what I risked to help you and allowed you to sleep in my bed while I was stuck on the sofa. It's a good sofa don't get me wrong, but it wasn't made to be slept on. And you know what? I enjoyed sleeping on my damn bed so show some fucking gratitude Number three." Mitsugi had responded who had interrupted her attempt to shock him, though the pain was the main factor in the decision not to though it seemed the boy was prepared. He held up a baton, which she has seen many times this past week. The baton was an electrical absorber that can absorb electricity of a level four electromaster. While it's not useful against the likes of The Railgun, it offered limited protection to weaken her electrical strikes.

Mitsugi had predicted that she was still far too weak to call upon her normal strength, and so it was a necessary precaution in case she attempted to rampage the moment she had awoken. Though she seemed bewildered seemingly forgetting her situation for a moment, she burst into laughter.

"What?" Mitsugi reacted feeling he was being mocked, though he didn't seem to mind as he was relieved the girl wasn't completely dead inside. And maybe for her, it wasn't best to suddenly laugh, she couldn't help it though her body reminded her why she should take it easy. She felt like dropping dead at any moment, and her body was no worse for wear than her clothes. Having just noticed them, they were laid on the side showing full and well what happened to them. An entire week of fighting for her life and constantly running had taken its toll. They were torn in places which gave her a horrible reminder of that guy who tried to take advantage of her most vulnerable moment.

But she was then saved by this boy who also ended up giving her shelter.

She was embarrassed, but she indeed had no right to be angry with him. Who sighing in frustration had noticed the depressing look in her eyes after she had remembered the situation.

"It was unsanitary for you to sleep in dirty clothes, so I took the liberty to cut you out of them. Just be grateful I actually left your underwear intact. Since my friend last night didn't even think twice before attempting to strip you out of them." Mitsugi said who didn't think twice before reminding her of that fact and pointed towards the white shirt at the end of the bed. "You are going to have to wear that for now until we sort something out later." He continued before taking a step toward the other room so he can give her time on her own.

But before he had left her sight Misaka suddenly spoke..

"My name is Mikoto Misaka... Please call me Misaka" She asked looking up to him and he was bewildered by this interaction. "What should I call you?" She continued which only got an awkward look from him. "Alright Mikoto, my name is Takashi Mitsugi. Although you can call me the guy who saved your arse." He said amusingly as started to walk away with a chuckle under his breath. Since Mikoto looked even more embarrassed that he was using her first name so casually. "Call me Misaka!" She shouted as he left her sight and Mitsugi didn't even respond but you could hear him laugh in the distance and saying something about formality wouldn't help her here...

"What an arse.." She had thought but again, she couldn't complain she since was just a guest on a very short leash, at least until her state improved anyways.

"Takashi Mitsugi" She said with a low voice while creeping forward on the bed to grab the shirt. She can tell from a first glance that this was his own shirt. She didn't expect him to suddenly pull out female clothing and being dressed in this was embarrassing. The thought he had seen the underwear she was wearing only made her feel even more hopeless. Not able to withstand any more embarrassment she took the shirt and tried to get out of the bed quickly despite her aching body to escape to the bathroom which was very close. Shutting the door behind her in what seemed a very clean and well kept bathroom, she hung the shirt up before looking in the mirror.

She had two bandages on her face which she hadn't noticed until now. Feeling them a bit she had realised one was a cut and the other was a serious bruise on the side of her head. Which explained why she had a serious headache, but this made her curious about the state of her entire body. The various places she knew she had gotten hurt were addressed and cleaned as if she was looked over by a professional medic.

At least somebody who knew their first aid and it could be only one person.

She really didn't understand this guy Mitsugi who at first glance was like any other in the underworld. But knowing the risks he decided to help her for something she wasn't really sure to understand yet. Since that was one thing she defiantly learned this past week and that there was a price for everything.

She had only hoped it wouldn't be too much and if it was, she'd be in a better state to deal with him if that time came.

Determined to find out exactly why she decided to clean herself up before leaving the bathroom with the white buttoned shirt on which came down to her knees. Only to find Mitsugi standing there waiting for her to return while holding a pot of noodles.

"I can guess you're hungry, but just know that I can't even cook. So unless you suddenly reveal to me you have a domestic side. These pot noodles will be the only thing we can have for now." Mitsugi said who offered Mikoto the cheapest pot of noodles she had ever seen, yet after a quick debate in her mind on rather it was poisoned or not, Mikoto accepted it without many complaints. She had an awkward stare since she really felt embarrassed being in just a shirt and underwear with a boy in the room. Especially since she was used to having shorts on and it felt just rather breezy down below. But Mitsugi didn't really seem affected by it and pointed towards the bed as if he wanted her to wait there. Until he brought out a chair from the other room and placed it in front of the bed. She wasn't sure what to make of this action as he brought his laptop over from behind the sofa and she just then sat there awkwardly at the end of the bed watching him open his own pot noodles to eat.

For a moment they just did that silently listening to the classical music while eating together until Mitsugi had suddenly spoken up. "You know, Mozart's pieces always gets me focused. Especially after I used my power a crap tonne for a girl who was supposed to be my death sentence." Mitsugi said, looking slightly annoyed while typing a few things on his laptop out of Mikoto's gaze. "What do you mean your death sentence?" She asked thinking this would lead to answers she had sought for herself.

"Mikoto Misaka, the Railgun of Tokiwadai. They never really informed me I was going to kill one of the level fives, such a task is something that requires planning and even its not worth the risk. So somebody tried to set me up to be killed, but that's not really my concern now. Being unprepared is a death sentence sure, but finding out why and hunting down those responsible should be our focus here. And that's why I decided to keep you alive, not only will you attract those who I seek but you have a much better chance dealing with the other level fives which call the underworld their home." Mitsugi explained who continued. "Do you have a problem with that?" He asked to which Mikoto slowly shook her head indicating she didn't and with an indifferent stare Mitsugi returned to eating while seeming content that Mikoto wasn't going to complain at all as most of her worries seemed to melt away.

He would be surprised about what she would say next, he didn't expect it to happen so soon.

"Then I will help you, its a give and take relationship right?" She said as Mitsugi looked at her with a sense of surprise, but it was more out of the confidence she had in her eyes than the actual words which left her mouth. "But you need to help me with the reason why I got into this mess the first place?" Mikoto said who had a real sense of regret as she remembered the state of her friend in the hospital and her sisters still going through that vile project. But she had to ask knowing the law of the underworld, that if you want someone to help you then you got to help them in return. She could just stay here and allow herself be the bait, or they can actually go out into the city and get something done.

But she has to tread carefully, being just a level five doesn't mean anything if you don't know how to survive. Even those existing in the darkness had formed a group showing there is merit in teamwork and not just relying on your own power. That just shows you how deep the darkness goes when even level fives can't keep it at bay.

Though only Mitsugi knew that wasn't an absolute rule.

"And in return Misaka, I'll do what I can to stop the level six shift," Mitsugi promised despite knowing the huge task before him. There were many stumbling blocks in the way and the major one was that level five who worked in his same organisation; WOLF. It was an organisation that trained kids into efficient killing machines and Aihana Etsu was the most dangerous member of that group. Not just because of his esper level, but because of his demeanour and inevitable future.

Thinking on this he got up briefly, turning to the katana he had previously used which was hung up on a wooden stand. The blade was sheathed in a black cover and he picked it before returning to the chair in front of Mikoto.

"Huh?" she wasn't sure why he had gotten that weapon. But Mitsugi looked serious before he had continued. "We need to talk about _him_ first and foremost because he will be one of our biggest obstacles," he said placing the weapon on the bed in front of The Railgun. "But first let's start at the beginning; Misaka, did you know that my family had been in the sword smithing business for many generations? You see this weapon was made for someone else and I'm just using it until the time comes it is passed along."

 **29th August, District Seven**

 **7:40am**

Shirai Kuroko had been doing what she had always done best and that was continuing her work with Judgement like nothing had happened at all. But it was clear by watching her from afar that she was depressed and only put on a brave face when she interacted with anyone. Mikoto has been missing for an entire week now and the last thing she remembered was a rather concerning conversation. Mikoto had wondered what Kuroko would do if she had done anything to Academy city as a whole and it had to lead to Kuroko admitting she would do her utmost to arrest her own Onee-Sama which for some reason brought a smile to Misaka's face. She didn't know exactly what she meant back then but now she had a clearer picture of what was going on.

The Level Six Shift and Radio Noise, she had learned it all from that boy who had called her dorm that night. Nothing really happened after the 23rd in regards to Touma visit to the Tokiwadai Dorms the second time. They both went on their respective ways as Touma continued to search for the testing sites for the next experiment while Kuroko attempted to figure out the truth on her own. She believed the boy would only get in her way and yet despite her own best efforts she came up with nothing.

And though she was a Judgement officer, she kept the truth from the others in Judgment like Uiharu as well as her friend Saten, this decision to not tell them was regretful and she felt like a hypocrite. What difference was there at this point between how her Onee-Sama acted and she was right now.

At least she had understood how her Onee-Sama felt.

But still, was she just making the mistake of attempting to solve this all on her own? Those doubts entered her mind as she watched one instance of an experiment by a camera feed. It only lasted a few seconds but it was more enough to see someone which looked like her Onee-Sama being killed by a white haired boy. She had seen that footage the previous night after visting one the labratories involved.

And since then she has barely got any sleep, drifting through the hours since not knowing what to think about what she had seen.

Although in truth, she wasn't able to sleep properly since her Onee-Sama vanished. As she couldn't simply go and confine with the others after it was made known by the City's higher ups that Mikoto was given permission to leave the city for a family emergency. It was like the city was laughing at her feelings and she had a terrible thought that what happened to Kongou was a warning to anyone who got involved. It had become clear to Kuroko that the City's Directors were involved due to the blatant cover up of her Onee-Sama going missing. Which only made it more frightening to think that they could take out anyone when they like and who they liked.

Just like what happened to Kongou Mitsuko.

She had no proof of that claim, but that is what Kuroko had felt. That was why she had no intention of getting no one else involved. Which included those at her Judgment branch and her friends. That was why she had planned to meet Kamijou Touma today. He was already involved and she clearly recognised she needs some support in dealing with this problem which was better than no support whatsoever.

"Where are you Onee-Sama?" Kuroko thought, she didn't know why but felt that Mitoko was in trouble. She had no fear of Mikoto being dead as that just seemed impossible in Kuroko's mind. Though she can't keep mindlessly ponder on this as she had a meeting to get to with the one who may able to provide help.

 **J** **udgement 177 Branch Office**

 **7:49am**

It didn't take Kuroko long to get to the branch office she works at and she was actually the only one of her branch to be around at this point. It didn't normally open until later when the members had finished school. Knowing that Uiharu and Konori weren't around in the morning until 9am she had decided to meet with that boy, Kamijou Touma here.

Which was something they had decided on to doing a few days ago. It was mostly to discuss about anything they had found regarding Mikoto and the sisters. Though she didn't seem optimistic as she saw Touma from a distance. He had looked like he failed in whatever hes been doing these past few days, which only made her feel her heart sink more than it already has from her own failures these last few days. But she wasn't going to allow this boy to see that side of her and took a deep breath before putting on a rather familiar expression for this boy. She looked rather annoyed in his eyes as she came walking over to the front door of the branch office. "Good morning... Kuroko." Touma said, also seeming to feel unpleasant being here. "Now isn't really the time for pleasantries boy." Kuroko said then she teleported inside suddenly to open the door for him on the other side.

"It was your idea to meet here you know." Touma said, becoming rather annoyed by her comment as he walked inside right after Kuroko. It didn't take him long to get up the stairs into the office area to find Kuroko was already on the computer and as he got closer he had noticed she was doing a search for somebody through the database. He knew this from the flickering of hundreds and hundreds of profiles on the computer screen.

"So did you have any luck on your end?" Kuroko asked without turning around. "The Misaka Sisters seemed to have disappeared round the same time she had gone missing. So the answer to your question, I have found nothing. I haven't even been able to get to the experimental sites until after they been cleaned of evidence." Touma said, basically summarized the results of the past few days in such a depressed voice.

"I shouldn't expect nothing less from a hairless monkey." Kuroko said rather coldly as she continued staring at the computer screen. Despite looking annoyed by her words once again he had to ask the obvious question. "I would assume you have found out something? Or you wouldn't be searching through the database right?" Touma asked and a cold shiver seemed to went up Kuroko's spine when he asked that and only because it made her remember what she saw through the camera feed.

"... Last Night. I had the pleasure of witnessing the death of her clone through a camera feed. It was at one of the recently opened laboratories which had been reported. On a hunch I though maybe this was related since it had connections to one of the labs which was mentioned in your documents you found." Kuroko said without turning round, but Touma had known she had felt disturbed from what she must have seen. "This white haired boy had killed the clone by just touching her blood. " Kuroko said as Touma looked away with a distant expression as he remembered the last time he saw Mikoto.

The boy wasn't sure if she was actually involved with the experiment. However that didn't really matter anymore since he was more concerned of finding her and putting a stop to the level six shift. "That must be Accelerator." Touma said, remembering the name from the documents he had found over a week ago. "Huh? Right, that makes sense since he's the one killing the clones." Kuroko said feeling silly that she hadn't realised this sooner, but even so the name Accelerator hadn't actually got them anything in the database. She was now attempting to search the database by inputting his physical traits and hair colour which she hoped would bring something up instead.

"I don't think you'll find that guy in the database so easily. If he's the one who's been killing the sisters then it's obviously Accelerator. That is the name of the guy involved with the experiment that they trying to level up." Touma said who seemed a bit nervous from just mentioning the guys name after hearing what Kuroko had saw.

"Killing 20,000 sister clones on 20,000 battlefields this entire thing is ridiculous why would they even dare do something barbaric? And Onee-Sama had been trying to stop this from continuing. Why did it even happen in the first place? "Kuroko asked herself as she thought of that very own question before suddenly coming to an answer herself.

"DNA Map! That is required to even make a clone of anyone and the city doesn't have automatic access to it. She had mentioned once about giving some doctors her DNA map at the Higuchi Pharmacology Laboratory 7 in order to help patients with muscular dystrophy." Kuroko said as she walked over to the file cabinet where she had hidden copies of the files found by Touma.

She went through it in quick succession and Touma knew she had found what she was looking for when her hands started trembling. "She has been enduring this entire thing for so long? Onee-Sama why didn't you...No why didn't I notice sooner?" Kuroko had thought who had hid her face behind the papers and despite not seeing it Touma didn't need x-ray vision to see what was going on.

"Higuchi Pharmacology Laboratory 7 is one of the labs listed in these documents." Kuroko said, starting to crunch the papers up from frustration..

"What do you want to do? Kuroko? As I think we need a different approach since the database hasn't found a match for this Accelerator character which isn't a surprise for someone at the heart of this experiment." Touma said pointing towards the computer which clearly said 'No Match was Found' and that only made Kuroko feel disheartened for a moment.

Though knowing that one of the new labs she had investigated these past few days had lead to her finding camera footage of an experiment gave her hope. She turned to Touma with a sense of confidence in her eyes before answering his question.

"We scope out Higuchi Pharmacology Laboratory 7. It's a good start to go with if anything." Kuroko said. Her confidence was picked up by Touma who had smiled in response. He didn't really understand what this entailed for him and neither did Kuroko but from her choice of words did it really mean she wanted to work together?

"So I guess you willing to accept my help this time?" Touma asked with a smile knowing this probably be hard for Kuroko to answer in response. She looked clearly agitated by his question and yet she couldn't push him away this time.

"I just know I can't do this alone and I'm pretty sure you can't either. And since I can't get any other judgement members involved in such a thing you're the only one that can help.. me. So the answer is obvious, yes, I'm willing to accept your help." Kuroko said, feeling dirty from admitting that to Touma. So much so she felt the need to wash her hands so she left for the kitchen area and as she did Touma's phone had rung.

Upon opening it he was surprised to see it was a phone call from his teacher, Tsukuyomi Komoe. He didn't know exactly why she would call him at this time of day since you would think she would be busy preparing for class later. Not thinking much of it he had answered the call without delay.

Not realising the teleporter had reentered the room.

"Hello Kom-"

"Touma-San... ... I... I don't know how to tell you this but... its terrible, terrible news..." Komoe had said interrupting him almost immediately and the tone of her voice had only made his heart beat faster from anxiety, as what he heard next would literally make it feel like time had stopped completely.

"It's about your Father..."


	5. A Lesson In Darkness

"The Mitsugi family has a long and proud history of making some of the finest swords in Japan. While this discussion isn't about them, it's important if we work together you understand my circumstance. As you can imagine Misaka, sword smiting isn't an industry with a big market in modern days. My family had learned to branch out over the years, and while we still make bladed weaponry, our focus is now more on just cutting technology able to tear through the hardest metal even in space. The potential is evident for a future space industry which Academy city had an interest in, but like any attempted business there are competitors, and that's when the WOLF organisation enter the story. The role they provided was simple; they would eliminate the competition for a single cost." Mitsugi explained looking up towards Misaka with a stoic expression. "Me, that was the price they had asked." he continued leaving Misaka who was stunned only temporary before responding with the obvious question. "Why? How can that happen so easily here... that's.. " Misaka asked who's confusion would be confronted by Mitsugi.

"Cruel? That's saying it lightly. Slavery, human experimentation, espionage and assassinations happen daily there is no escaping it. And to think this darkness originated from just the desire for extra security, but faced with the growing development of espers and the increasing assets of Academy city's must influential people had outpaced the capability of Anti-skill. The organisations that would populate the underworld would be a direct result of filling that gap Anti-skill couldn't fill themselves. What grew from security measures turned into groups competing for influence, and the WOLF organisation is no different... No... it's better to say we 'fought' to retain influence." Mitsugi explained as Misaka sat there taking it all in. To be honest, this was a lot to take in for The Railgun; she had got an idea how things worked and that not even Anti-skill or judgement couldn't do anything to stop it.

"You assassinated people to retain influence?" Misaka asked as Mitsugi nodded before continuing. "Yeah, and I killed so many people not with this Katana if that's what you're thinking. I honestly don't know what I was doing with it anyway; I barely can use it properly let alone for battle. It's just a focus and nothing more. Failing again to give it to its rightful owner." he had answered clarifying the use of this Katana.

"Focus and for who?" Misaka asked leading to Mitsugi to get into the heart of the discussion. "A focus is often an item that helps to improve an esper ability. And for who it's for is the person I wanted to talk about originally. Aihana Etsu. That name might not mean much to you, considering you're very new to this world. But let me explain to you why it means everything to me and those who survive in the underworld day by day. But to be clear this guy is dangerous if there is anything that personifies the darkness of Academy City it's him. Though he wasn't always like that if you ask me." Mitsugi said who seemed visibly shaken by his words. " Still he is known by many as the Enforcer, it's rare that he doesn't achieve his objectives and there is a clear policy among many groups to stand aside when he gets involved. Though his involvement in issues is actually few and far between. Not sure what else he does, but when Etsu gets involved, he often treads on settling on the status quo. Remember when I said the WOLF organisation fought to retain influence? Whoever is our benefactor has a unique interest in keeping the balance of the underworld groups in check. Do you understand why?" he asked testing to see if Misaka understood anything he was saying here.

While it wasn't hard for her to understand what was going on, it was just hard to take all this in at once. "To keep the groups competing; competition breeds innovation right? And scientific advancement to gain an advantage over each other...but... how does? " Misaka responds, but she didn't understand how this retain their influence. "You're correct but do you mean retain influence? I'm not entirely sure, but if you ask me to keep the groups where they belong and where they're known. The benefactor has connections with all the groups of the underworld, the WOLF organisation as an extension has this information. Meaning our organisation has de facto control over the underworld as long the status quo remains. And Etsu enforces it with absolute brutality against anyone who rises above their station along with the rest of the organisation... " Mitsugi explained who started to doubt his choices, knowing how things work do they even have a chance? While he tried to hide his sudden indecision, the clever girl known as The Railgun figured something was wrong as Mitsugi retreated from where he sat with his Katana and placed it back where it belong.

"Just know this I'm a coward who had chosen to fight to survive and nothing more. And the other reason to why I'm helping you, as foolish as it seems is because your power is a direct counter to Etsu. With you around, I think we have a fighting chance... I hope.." Mitsugi finished saying before returning to the sofa leaving Misaka alone with her thoughts.

 **Keitz Office**

 **August 29th,** **8:20 am**

"You're not normally the same Kihara that bothers me here," Keitz said as he was working in his office only to be interrupted by an old looking scientist. He looked so frail and also had a small hunchback which was offset by his rather unemotional smile. Keitz knew beyond this frail, and somewhat emotionless exterior laid a sinister intellect which he considered more dangerous than Amata.

His full name was Kihara Gensei

Just like everyone else in the Kihara family, they showed no sign of caring for the lives they took to push the boundaries of science even further, and this project was Gensei's brain child. They may just be clones, but they're still living people in Keitz's mind. They were playing God by creating them then deciding their slaughter. Though it didn't matter much to him, he was only hired to see the security of this project.

Keitz, sighing deeply moved his left hand towards the chair opposite of him which was his suggestion for Gensei to sit down. But Kihara seemed to have no interest in paying heed to his suggestion

"Yeah it would seem Amata has no love for this project and he seems to be more focused on the 'bird who has taken the third worm away.' So much so he has requested that I should give you advice on various matters." Kihara Gensei said, seeming to feel more comfortable standing in front of the desk than sitting down. Keitz was annoyed with the treatment he was getting from the Kiharas, but he can't exactly complain especially when it's Gensei.

He is his employer, so he has to do what this Kihara says, but it never meant he had to listen to Amata. Though it was less that and more about his work ethic which was finishing a job once it's given. And despite the controversial reputation surrounding the level six shift he had intended to see it through until very the end.

"Well then Keitz, tell me the problem at hand which needed to take my valuable time," Gensei said with a sudden cheerful glare which Keitz didn't pay much attention to as he returned to typing an email on the computer. "Well, it's not something that should be considered a problem. Though having a second opinion on the plan isn't exactly a bad thing. Up until now, I've been observing Amata's attempt to stop The Railgun and all the time keeping an eye on the other party." Keitz said, tapping a few buttons on the keyboard before turning the monitor around to Gensei's direction.

An image of a young, twin-tailed hair girl alongside some written information was present on the monitor screen, "She's part of Judgement." Gensei said, only opening his eyes briefly to see just a profile on screen.

"Exactly. She's the roommate of The Railgun at Tokiwadai. We had predicted she would make some noise days after The Railgun's disappearance from the public eye and that's because she hadn't accepted the official reason." Keitz explained as he seemed to sit there without a shred of emotion in his eyes as he said this to Gensei.

"Well, the official reason wasn't going to hold up when her actual family comes to the city asking questions. So what has she been doing?" Gensei asked just as Kietz turned the monitor back to him he had noticed the old Kihara's lack of interest.

"Well, she has been breaking into the labs to investigate. Unlike like with The Railgun, we can use electronic tracking equipment to keep an eye on the little teleporter. And from what we understand she had found evidence of the experiment in one of the laboratories, but she wasn't able to collect the evidence as she was forced to leave. So in response, we could simply provide the proof of her trespassing to the Judgement administrative review board that decides if volunteers are unsuitable for their posit-" However this line of thought was cut short when Gensei began to speak.

"No imagination whatsoever Keitz" Gensei said interrupting him which was only followed up by a sick grin on his face. "That's why your purpose has always been to follow orders. Reporting her to the review board fails to serve anything other than getting her out of our hair completely and that isn't fun." Gensei continued whose smile only turned cruel as he continued to speak. "It will be much more fun to teach her the dangers of test subjects being friends with each other in this city. Especially being one who goes by the rules..." Gensei said as a completely cold expression ran across his face which had no sense of mercy and this was expressed entirely in his smile.

Keitz only can look back with a lack of surprise. "You Kiharas... Never change.." Keitz thought as he sends an email with a push of a button.

"I'll make the arrangements," Keitz said with an unfazed expression. Hearing this Gensei was preparing to leave, but something else remained on Keitz's mind. "This isn't anything else that you should inform me about?" Keitz asked looking straight into the old man's cruel eyes, who saw Keitz as nothing but an insect. "There is nothing else to tell," Gensei responded before leaving making Keitz visibly annoyed by his response.

"That Bastard."

 **29th August,**

 **6:29am,**

For the second time running Mitsugi was on his sofa in his apartment. He liked his sofa and would not trade it for anything in the world; however, it was a pain to sleep on and he couldn't exactly just waltz into his bed since a girl was sleeping right now. Right now he counted that as a blessing, with The Railgun asleep he was able to do some research on her situation.

Using that laptop he had, the boy connected to the servers which provided him with information as part of the WOLF organisation. However, this would be a double edge sword, knowing they would be soon able to track him. But this was an issue he had considered knowing they couldn't stay here for long anyway.

With this in mind, he continued looking at the circumstances surrounding Misaka. DNA map, Radio noise and the destruction of Tree Diagram.

"Tch..." He mumbled, hearing her gentle breathing all the way from the other side of the room which only ended up distracting him from his task. _"Spoiled little girl, taking my entire bed. Should have been an arsehole and made her sleep on the sofa."_ [ Mitsugi thought while not being sure what he could do about it since considering her injuries she could recover much better using that bed then relying on the sofa. When he had checked her body for injuries, he had had notice the injury on her back. He remembered the events of that night and the guy she had killed had the power of Aero Hand. She must have smacked that metal pipe hard by that surprise attack, and the result was this massive bruising.

He couldn't help picture himself in his early days, the constant injuries and the feeling of being alone. She was fighting to survive as he and many others had in this world. The difference was she wasn't doing it just for her safety. She was fighting to survive for her clones, those copies which can be produced at the touch of a button.

Either way, Mitsugi needed The Railgun to recover as much as possible for the trials ahead. Showing consideration and care were just one step in building a foundation for a real working relationship. By taking care of her injuries and committing himself to help her with the problems she faced she would return the favour.

For now, he was trying to learn as much as possible about her situation and her true capabilities. For what he want will naturally come to him, so the issue he faced was how to deal with Accelerator. Everything about him known by the WOLF organisation was on the server. This included details about his Vector manipulation. From just reading this it would be tough for anything to be done about Accelerator personally, and that wasn't the only problem.

The Rensa.

The one that attacked Misaka at the tree diagram control centre with Kihara Amata. There was no doubt in his mind the WOLF organisation will keep track of him. It is that threat which is the only reason he hadn't been caught yet. Compared to the Rensa theory, he and Misaka were only a minor concern.

"The Level Six Shift Experiment... Project Radio Noise..." Mitsugi had thought as he stood up from the sofa and turned towards the girl's direction. She was laying under the thick covers of his bed, and she seemed not to have moved at all since falling asleep after their conversation. Although it seemed more like a lecture than a discussion, she fell asleep naturally as if there was no concern.

 _"How foolish"_ Mitsugi had thought thinking about the naivety of that girl. If he were anybody else like Kou, she would be committing the worse mistake possible. But he felt maybe he was the foolish one.

Mitsugi had noticed an issue in Distract 22 that Mikoto was suffering from PTSD and he knew this since he seen it many times. Especially what would occur with sufferers when they attempted to sleep. Dreaming isn't a kind thing anymore for some who suffer from it. It was clear right now as the gentle sound of her breathing had became disturbed like she was starting to panic. So with a dissatisfied stare, he made his way over while taking out a knife from his jacket which was hanging up on the way to the bed.

 _"I must be foolish to think someone this broken can do anything."_ Mitsugi had thought who now stood over her at the bedside. With a knife in hand, he thought to himself about the implication of what he was thinking right now. Everything seemed too much for him to handle, Accelerator, Rensa and Etsu... This was starting to sound downright suicidal, and all he has in his court was a broken Railgun.

He originally underestimated just how dangerous it was getting involved with this girl, since the project she wanted to stop had links diving much deeper into the darkness than he ever dared to tread. He was only fighting to survive, a selfish desire which had no room for others.

At this point, if this continues it doesn't matter how far he can see into the future. He and this girl will die before they even think about escaping from the city. They will probably be dead by tomorrow if they're careful.

This was an uphill battle no matter how you see it.

And he could avoid all of that trouble by using this opportunity right now to reverse everything he has done with the swing of this knife. His charisma skill was terribly high if he were to think this as a D&D game. He could pull some favours to make this all blow away. The fact somebody tried to offer him up like a sheep to a wolf last night can just be forgotten.

He just had to be extra careful and check his information sources more than twice. So he can at least survive long enough to consider much safer options out.

"Idiot, more reliable options? There is none..."

As Mitsugi was debating with himself what action to take he had noticed Mikoto had begun to fidget more like the way she was pulling on the bed sheets and how her legs was starting to move constantly like she was trying to run away in her sleep.

She was frightened, and he knew that feeling all too well. The same look she had when they first met, that hopeless stare was the same one he had saw in himself.

Realising this only had brought a bad taste in his mouth even if taking her life right now could ensure his safety at least until the end of the year. He could use that time to put incredible distance between himself and this city. _"No,"_ he thought trying to put a stop to this thinking. _"I'll be dead by years end... why the fuck did you end up getting involved with the underworld? Because of some clones which could be produced by the push of the button?... This entire city is just fucked up... and I'm just watching it happen."_ Mitsugi had thought as he dropped the knife seemingly defeated by his own thoughts.

No matter what option he chooses his survival seems bleak at best. So even if he was going to die, then he could try very least do one thi... Before he can finish that thought, Mitsugi had heard three knocks at his door.

Everything grounded to a halt as he slowly crept to his cabinet and pulled out a handgun, the same one he was using last night. And again three knocks was heard throughout the apartment, this time not knowing it had awoken the sleeping girl. Staying still while laying in bed, Mitsugi slowly crept towards the front door preparing to open it. But as he touched the handle his eyes glowed for a few seconds stunning Mitsugi in his tracks.

He seemed to be trembling and despite this aroused fear, he lowered the handgun before placing it on the ground. Realising though his ability if he actually went out there armed he would've been killed on the spot. Taking a deep breath Mitsugi found the courage to go ahead and opened the door to none other than his superior in the WOLF organisation.

"Aihana Etsu"

Was it the end of the road already?

* * *

 **Author Notes** : Just a quick note at the end of this chapter, I do read all reviews and even respond to them when possible. Even guest reviews, but since there is no efficient way to respond don't expect a reply. But I have listened, agreeing with views about the use of the Katana I've changed a few things and will abandon it's use as a weapon and turning it into a minor sub-plot point. Anyway I hope you enjoy and look forward to the next chapter as we find out what happened with Touma and Kuroko.


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